Top Ten Favorite Albums of 2012

I listened to so many good albums in 2012, I couldn’t stand pruning my list to only the top ten. Thus, below are listed my top ten favorite albums of 2012 and ten honorable mentions, making the list an even twenty albums in total.

A disclaimer: I made few attempts at being objective in my rankings. I chose my favorite albums on the basis of how much I enjoy them, not how technically proficient their musicians are or how unique they sound. Feel free to leave feedback on my choices, but I won’t change them except on my own terms.

The honorable mentions and top ten are enclosed in spoiler tags not only for convenience but also for those who don’t want the list to be spoiled while they’re scrolling through my blog. Asterisks denote albums with any curses (albums with more than a few profanities aren’t counted in this list).

The sum of applicable 2012 albums I’ve heard (forty-four total), listed in alphabetical order of artist:

A Method of Symmetry by Agent Whiskers

Awake in the City by The American Dollar

Weather Systems * by Anathema

Vital by Anberlin

Hide and Seek by The Birthday Massacre

Wrecking Ball by Bruce Springsteen

Violent Waves by Circa Survive

The Afterman: Ascension * by Coheed and Cambria

(III) by Crystal Castles

Away from the World by Dave Matthews Band

In Currents by The Early November

The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw... by Fiona Apple

Thanks to the internet, ThePianoGuys have garnered a large amount of attention — rightfully so in my opinion, for their relaxing orchestrations of popular songs are, if not original, enjoyable. The covers on their eponymous album include such songs as Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”, OneRepublic’s “Secrets” with a dash of Beethoven added, and even a medley of several themes from Star Wars. The one original track on the album, “Arwen’s Vigil”, matches in quality to the rest of the songs.

* * *

9. Les Friction by Les Friction(symphonic rock)

Some time after one of the brothers behind music production company E.S. Posthumus died, the surviving brother joined with a composer friend, both of them found a singer, and Les Friction came into being. To say the least, their debut album is ambitious: Powerful strings, electric guitar, and digital flourishes make Les Friction a study in melodrama. There are softer moments, though, like the first half of “String Theory” and beautiful closer “Come Back to Me” that balance out the louder parts. While there are a few points when the album seems ready to collapse under its own aspirations (“Save Your Life” being the closest the album comes to a misstep), I can’t help loving the whole thing.

* * *

8. Oceania by The Smashing Pumpkins(alternative rock)

Listening to Oceania was my first time listening closely to The Smashing Pumpkins; I had heard a few isolated songs from the band on Pandora Radio, but the songs had never caught my interest. The introduction song, “Quasar”, was more or less what I expected from The Smashing Pumpkins based on what little I knew of them: average alternative rock. The rest of Oceania was not. The slower songs were poignant; the more aggressive ones kept my attention; even the title song, over nine minutes long, I found enjoyable. I really don’t know why I’ve never bothered listening to The Smashing Pumpkins before — at any rate, Oceania has me interested.

* * *

7. Dead End Kings by Katatonia(alternative metal / symphonic rock)

Dead End Kings is not a very unique record; symphonic rock / metal has been made many times before. What makes Dead End Kings different are two things: its restraint and its fantastic consistency. A mixture of growling metal-esque guitars with orchestral elements may sound like a recipe for bombast, but the strings and piano only appear when they’re needed, and the lead singer’s subdued voice helps keep everything in check. From the first track to the last, every song delivers.

* * *

6. Away from the World by Dave Matthews Band(rock / jazz rock)

My first experience with a Dave Matthews Band album came this year when I found my dad had Under the Table and Dreaming. Away from the World is not another Under the Table and Dreaming, but it is just as good. The first song, “Broken Things”, starts the album with a bang as guitar, violin, saxophone, and trumpet mix in a catchy, upbeat tune; henceforth, the album never loses steam as it jumps from jazz to acoustic rock to probably several other genres I forget. I have trouble assigning a specific genre or genres to Dave Matthews Band’s music, but I don’t care. Just call it “good music”.

* * *

5. Clockwork Angels by Rush(progressive rock / rock)

The fact that Rush is still playing music when its members are all sixty is great by itself; the fact that Rush was still able to make an album like Clockwork Angels is even better. Rush certainly doesn’t sound old on this album; the first four songs are hard-hitting rock numbers, and the rest of the album, while not so aggressive altogether, doesn’t sound lethargic (except in the chorus to “Seven Cities of Gold”). While this album isn’t much different than Rush’s other work, its overarching plot and the inclusion of orchestral elements in a few songs are the only touches needed to make this album run like clockwork.

* * *

4. What We Saw from the Cheap Seats * by Regina Spektor(indie pop)

I love piano, and I’m a sucker for a catchy tune, so it follows I would like Regina Spektor’s work. Before listening to this album, I had only heard isolated Regina Spektor songs; I didn’t quite realize how fun her music could be. Granted, this isn’t an entirely happy album — it’s more or less as bittersweet as the other albums on this list — but the piano melodies and other little nuances in her music can certainly give that illusion.

* * *

3. Gossamer * by Passion Pit(electronic / indie pop)

I’ll be honest: I wasn’t too taken by “Take a Walk” when I first heard it. Thanks to “Take a Walk”, I began listening to Gossamer not expecting much more than decently enjoyable pop with electronic influences. The rest of Gossamer’s first half was better than expected, but after “Mirrored Sea” finished, I was still unprepared for the album’s second half. Many albums get weaker during the final stretch — Gossamer, in direct opposition to my expectations, got stronger. I like the album as a whole, of course, but having such a consistent back half keeps the album from sounding weak and gives it a strong push to the finish.

* * *

2. Awake in the City by The American Dollar(post rock / electronic rock / instrumental)

An airy, piano-driven venture through bustling streets and back alleys dimmed by evening, Awake in the City is simultaneously relaxing and affecting. Ethereal guitar, drums, piano, and other assorted ambient electronics are incorporated precisely into melodies and ever-present crescendos I can’t help enjoying. It’s deliberate; it’s dreamy; it’s beautiful.

* * *

1. Southern Air by Yellowcard(pop rock / pop punk)

If I had to use one word to describe Southern Air, it would be nostalgic. Yellowcard’s energetic, violin-tinged brand of pop punk conjures images of summer, and while the lyrics aren’t quite as happy as the music, the album as a whole left me with an optimistic aftertaste. Of course, the album isn’t all about emotions: The violin and drums add the technical proficiency necessary for a good album; the rest of the instruments and lead singer Ryan Key’s vocals fill in the gaps satisfyingly. From perfect opening song “Awakening” to the 5/4 verses of “Sleep in the Snow” to the soft guitar and violin of “Ten” to the final guitar strum in the title track, Southern Air is three things to me: consistent, fun, and, at the moment, my favorite album of 2012.

(P.S. My apologies for the delay in posting this list: I was sick for all of last week.)

Three songs, actually (though I thought there were more while I was listening, lol). I don't think Kids in the Street would have made either of my lists anyway, though.

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Username:Legolover-361

Joined:June 9, 2009

Birthday:11 / 27 / 1995

Interests:Under Lego, I have Mindstorms NXT, Bionicle (duh!), and a ton of other sets. Then outside of Lego there's writing, drawing, writing music, creating and editing images with GIMP, and a bunch more.

Beliefs:Christian if you squint and tilt your head just so. Maybe Christian-esque deist.

Third Eye Blind"Semi-Charmed Life""Jumper""Never Let You Go""How's It Going to Be"

Owl City"Alligator Sky""Fireflies""Hello Seattle"

Red Hot Chili Peppers"Can't Stop""Snow (Hey Oh)""Dani California"

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"The problem with quotes on the Internet is that you can't verify whether they are correct."

BZPower:

wuts a adverb

an advertisement for versb

Suddenly everything makes sense

I intolerate tolerance of tolerance of intolerance of tolerating intolerance when intolerating tolerance is the same as tolerating intolerance when you tolerate tolerance of intolerance of tolerance, but most people tolerant of intolerance are intolerate of tolerance intolerant of their tolerance.

I listen to people banging rocks together. Back from when music was GOOD.

OH GOD IT'S THE NINETIES

RUN

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if you were true fans to bionicle you would support it's return you are not fans if you don't want it to come back even if you followed the entire story and loved them and bought every set and had joined a website with a large fanbase for them and made tons of friends and talked about bionicle every day and then when it ended you moved on to hero factory and don't want bionicle to come back you aren't a fan then because you thought it was going downhill and didn't like every single little aspect of it and you don't want it to come back and you aren't petitioning lego like mad and throwing temper tantrums left and right and aren't carrying on bionicle's revolutionary legacy means you are all traitors to those who want their most favorite toy back we know our fantasy will come true because we are here we are waiting and we want our bionicle and if star trek fans had as a group said no point in talking about this anymore it's never going to come back it never would have come back and lego is pushing their poorly designed and overpriced hero factory in little kids faces bionicle didn't need it so we have evidence to prove that our toy line which we simply cannot live without is going to come back because we will hold our breath and storm denmark if we don't get our way which we will because we always get our way and get what we want even if it comes back in ten years we can ask for the entire new line of bionicle for our thirtieth birthday and when bionicle comes back we'll have plenty of money to buy them because we didn't betray bionicle and buy hero factory like you all did you annoying little black hearted meanies who call yourselves fans when you're not you stinky shoe wearing snobs who don't agree with the movement to bring bionicle back

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"Eggs are white rocks with a kind of yellowy stuff in them that you can cook and eat. Bacon is delicious."

"You'e seian what?"-- Me talking to a friend about DBZ...

"It takes a long time to hone skillz like mine."--Me, after failing miserably at writing my own name in Japanese

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[5:42:52 PM] Tyler St. Francis: Until very, very recently, I was under the impression that platypuses were ducks and beavers mixed together.[5:42:53 PM] Tyler St. Francis: They're not.

5:11:14 PM Aderia GAH WHY DO BOYS THINK EVERYTHING IS A COMPETITION5:11:21 PM me XD5:11:24 PM me Because it is!5:11:34 PM me It's the ciiiiiiircle of life.5:11:46 PM me It's the wheeel of fooortuuuuune...5:11:49 PM Aderia but circles are not competive5:12:29 PM me Um...5:13:33 PM Aderia How many guys does it take to screw in a lightbulb? / None, because by the time they're done sizing each other up, you've already done it yourself.

4:16:47 PM Aimee/Aderia Hey [GSR], Mr. Microsoft, if you're around, would it hypothetically be possible for a Makuta with very very precise control over Electricity and Magnetism to manipulate computers/technology through those powers? aside from makign them explode4:39:40 PM onarax I doubt it, as I doubt any being could learn how to control such circuts with such a precise speed and size, plus not all computers have the same circuts so it'd be even more complicated.4:44:44 PM Will ...then again, Makuta aren't real. Technically they could do whatever they wanted. xD4:45:28 PM onarax They're antidermis aren't they, why not just possess the thing.4:45:58 PM Legolover-361 "AHAHAHA, I, MAKUTA TERIDAX, HAVE POSSESSED THIS LAPTOP--"4:46:02 PM Legolover-361 *blue screen of death*4:46:07 PM Will They also have Rahi/Insect Control abilites, which is basically controlling robotic brains.4:46:19 PM Will (and lolz)4:46:21 PM Legolover-361 *you are seeing this screen because your computer had to be shut down...*

10:10:33 PM onarax Quick what's 3+3?10:10:38 PM Zarayna hmm10:10:39 PM Legolover-361 122!10:11:05 PM onarax Congratulation to LL, he wins the grand prize of 1 Million Dollars, now if only we could count it out for him.

[7/4/2012 10:51:34 PM] Tyler: I just tried to figure out the radius of a triangle. ._.[7/4/2012 10:52:37 PM] Legolover-361: ...Did you succeed in finding the radius of a triangle? I'm curious.

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"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt."